Asparagus plant--`Jersey Titan`

ABSTRACT

An Asparagus plant having tolerance to rust (Puccinia asparagi), root rot (Fusarium oxysporum), and crown rot (F. monilioforme), with good vigor and very high branching aspect producing high quality and quantity of marketable yield spears in hot weather, having tips which remain closed when others tend to open prematurely, and having a high rust rating.

GENERAL BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

This invention relates to Asparagus plants and is directed to an allmale hybrid which we have developed and which is one resulting from along range program devoted to improving Asparagus plants in general andto some particular characteristics thereof.

We have particularly stressed improvement in Asparagus plants forgrowing in different environments and which are tolerant to rust(Puccinia asparagi), root rot (Fusarium oxysporum), and crown rot (F.moniliforme).

This plant is an example of such improvement and also provides highyield over extended periods of time and trials in at least one area.

DETAILS OF THE INVENTION

Since this new Asparagus plant is vigorous and very high branching, wehave chosen to call the same "Jersey Titan" for commercialidentification.

Our new cultivar produces spears with tight tips, which remain closedlonger than those of other cultivars, thus providing improved spearquality as opposed to spears having loose tips, which are notmarketable.

We have asexually propagated this new Asparagus plant by crown divisionand find that it comes true in successive generations.

In view of our desire to develop plants with improved rust ratings, wehave tested this new plant on fusarium infested land and found that ascompared with other varieties on a scale of 1 (very rusty) to 9(healthy) our new cultivar has a rating of 6.6 This may be compared withMary Washington for example, (an unpatented variety) which has a rustrating of 3, an obviously desirable improvement by "Jersey Titan".

Since our long extending program has required comparison with othervarieties and many cultivars of our own development, we have accumulateddata to establish and judge the various plants, particularly in respectto marketable yields, establishing annual rankings amoung other facetsof comparative data.

This new Asparagus plant while not having the highest marketable yieldof an 81 variety line, nevertheless was found to be very high, in fact3rd in test trials, and is thus superior to many other varieties, somebeing unpatented such as Martha Washington which on the same scale wasnearly 10% less productive.

As a matter of interest, the harvest periods used as basis forestablishing the foregoing positions were 21 days in May of one year,(May 7 to May 28) 25 days in May and June (May 13-June 10) 34 days (May10-June 15) and 45 days (May 2-June 20) of successive years, theaverages confirming our before stated relationships.

In order to illustrate and further disclose some of the aspects of ournew Asparagus plant, we have prepared the data in the following tableand in the drawing wherein FIG. 1, discloses some of that data asapplied to a typical plant and in FIG. 2 a color illustration withcolors as nearly representative of a typical plant as such anillustration can provide, the colors referring to Munsell Color LimitCascade, by Macbeth Division of Kollmorgen Corp.

DETAILED BONTANICAL DESCRIPTION

    ______________________________________                                        ASPARAGUS PLANT NO. JERSEY TITAN (277E × 22-8)                                                 Inch ×                                                                  2.54 = cm.                                             ______________________________________                                        STALK DATA                                                                    Number of nodes below first branch(1)                                                                  21                                                   Number of cm from crown to first branch(1)                                                             54.6                                                 Number of branches       54                                                   Number cm. between first and last branch(1)                                                            128                                                  Internode length in cm. between branches(1)                                                            2.37                                                 Number of cladophyll nodes beyond last branch                                                          27 (1)                                               Number of cm. beyond last branch                                                                       13.3                                                 Internode length in cm. beyond last branch                                                             0.49 (1)                                             Largest stalk diameter in mm                                                                           14                                                   Mean diameter of three largest stalks in mm                                                            13.3                                                 Number of stalks         13                                                   Stalk vigor index (No. × Mean Diam)                                                              2,300                                                Mature stalk color, bloom removed(1)                                                                   21-13                                                Highest headed stalk cm to first branch                                                                54.6                                                 Length of highest headed stalk cm                                                                      196.0                                                FLOWER DATA                                                                   Petal tip (yellow)       26-4                                                 Petal base (purple)      48-6                                                 Flower length mm         6.72                                                 Flower width at midpoint mm                                                                            2.53                                                 CLADOPHYLL DATA                                                               Number per node          4.85                                                 Length mm                10.5                                                 Width mm                 0.123                                                ______________________________________                                    

We claim:
 1. A new and distinct variety of Asparagus plant as hereinshown and described, characterized particularly as to novelty by theunique combination as an all male hybrid of production of high yield ofmarketable spears with tight spear tips in hot weather which remainclosed longer than most cultivars, tolerance to rust (Pucciniaasparagi), root rot (Fusarium oxysporum), and crown rot (F. moniliforme)of good vigor, and very high branching.